Pledge of Allegiancehttp://www.businessinsider.com/category/pledge-of-allegiance
en-usMon, 19 Mar 2018 22:49:15 -0400Mon, 19 Mar 2018 22:49:15 -0400The latest news on Pledge of Allegiance from Business Insiderhttp://static3.businessinsider.com/assets/images/bilogo-250x36-wide-rev.pngBusiness Insiderhttp://www.businessinsider.com
http://www.businessinsider.com/leon-county-schools-scrap-pledge-of-allegiance-waiver-after-backlash-2016-8A Florida school district sparked an uproar after giving students a waiver to opt out of the Pledge of Allegiancehttp://www.businessinsider.com/leon-county-schools-scrap-pledge-of-allegiance-waiver-after-backlash-2016-8
Wed, 24 Aug 2016 10:13:26 -0400Sonam Sheth
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static4.businessinsider.com/image/55c278d42acae7c7018bd693-2400/gettyimages-3126902.jpg" alt="WARMINSTER, PA - MARCH 24: Samantha Dracup (R), a fourth grade student at Longstreth Elementary School pledges allegiance to the flag March 24, 2004 in Warminster, Pennsylvania. An atheist parent, Michael Newdow, of Sacramento, California is scheduled to be heard by the Supreme Court today to defend his position that the 'Under God' in the Pledge of Allegiance is unconstitutional. If the Supreme Court upholds and expands their original ruling, which affected western states, all U.S. children will be affected. (Photo by William Thomas Cain/Getty Images)" data-mce-source="William Thomas Cain/Getty Images" data-link="http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/samantha-dracup-a-fourth-grade-student-at-longstreth-news-photo/3126902"></p><p>A waiver form allowing students at schools in Leon County, Florida, to opt out of the Pledge of Allegiance was <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2016/08/23/pledge-allegiance-form-axed-after-outcry/89237830/">withdrawn</a> on Monday after it sparked public backlash.</p>
<p>The form was widely criticized on social media after Micah Brienen <a href="https://www.facebook.com/micah.brienen/posts/10154450894134921">posted a photo of the waiver</a> on Facebook with "This is the dumbest thing I have ever read and I am so ashamed of this," written across it in ink. Brienen's niece, who attends Killearn Lakes Elementary School in Leon County, brought the form home. The post had been shared more than 4,700 times as of Wednesday morning.</p>
<p>The form was sent out to comply with a state law that <a href="http://www.wtxl.com/news/leon-county-schools-remove-pledge-of-allegiance-opt-out-form/article_1c526760-693c-11e6-a5eb-3f5f2350ac7a.html">requires the district</a> to give students the option to abstain from the Pledge of Allegiance, Leon County Schools spokesperson Chris Petley told ABC27. This is the first year the school district chose to include the form in the student handbook, which Petley said that the district has decided to remove.</p>
<p>A statement from Leon County Schools said that this year a change in Florida law, signed by Republican governor Rick Scott, "requires all school districts to publish in the student code of conduct booklet the students' right to not participate in reciting the Pledge of Allegiance."</p>
<h2>Here's the form:</h2>
<p><img src="http://static5.businessinsider.com/image/57bda837db5ce952008b878f-1200/pledge-request.jpg" alt="pledge request" data-mce-source="Micah Brienen/Facebook"></p>
<p>Because of the criticism, superintendent Jackie Pons decided to remove the waiver from remaining student handbooks. As of Tuesday morning, the form had been removed, and parents would instead be required to sign a form stating they have read the student handbook, according to Petley. The handbook now includes language taken directly from the law instead of a notice from the school district.</p>
<p><a href="http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2016/08/23/lcs-pledge-allegiance-form-axed-after-outcry/89206338/">In an email interview</a> with The Tallahassee Democrat, Brienen said that although he respects freedom of speech, he also believes students should respect the Pledge of Allegiance.</p>
<p>"First, I want to be very clear that I do not believe a child should be forced to recite the pledge or stand up. It is their right to opt out, but I do personally feel it is respectful to stand if you are physically able, even if you want to do so in silence," Brienen wrote.</p>
<p>However, he also emphasized his opposition to the waiver form and the Florida law.</p>
<p>"Although more must be done to defend our country's values and traditions, what's next? No American flags in school? It's just another example of progressive politics destroying our school system," Brienen wrote.</p>
<p>"Leon County Schools values patriotism, civic responsibility, and the Pledge of Allegiance," the district's statement said.</p><p><strong>SEE ALSO:&nbsp;<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/hillary-clinton-health-conspiracy-jimmy-kimmel-2016-8" >Clinton responds to health questions: I feel like the campaign 'has entered an alternate universe'</a></strong></p>
<p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/leon-county-schools-scrap-pledge-of-allegiance-waiver-after-backlash-2016-8#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> <p>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/bill-browser-magnitsky-act-how-sanctions-on-russia-hurt-putins-most-closest-allies-2018-3">BILL BROWDER: How sanctions on Russia hurt Putin's closest allies</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/under-god-added-to-pledge-of-allegiance-2014-6Why 'Under God' Was Added To The Pledge Of Allegiancehttp://www.businessinsider.com/under-god-added-to-pledge-of-allegiance-2014-6
Sat, 14 Jun 2014 19:39:00 -0400Christina Sterbenz
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static1.businessinsider.com/image/539b614c6bb3f76008b6871b-480-/pledge-of-allegiance-1.jpg" border="0" alt="pledge of allegiance" width="480" /></p><p>As red-blooded Americans, we all know the Pledge of Allegiance. Most schools require students to recite it before the day's classes begin.&nbsp;</p>
<p>But the 31-word passage has evolved over time. Most people don't realize the phrase "under God" wasn't included until Flag Day in 1954 &mdash; 60 years ago today.</p>
<p>Here's what went down.&nbsp;</p>
<p>In 1892, <a href="http://www.ushistory.org/documents/pledge.htm">Francis Bellamy</a>, a minister from upstate New York, reportedly&nbsp;wrote the Pledge as an expression of fealty to the U.S. It read: "I pledge allegiance to my flag and the republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all." Some consider Bellamy a socialist and his creation a <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-dreier/pledge-of-allegiance-origins_b_4497369.html">criticism of rampant greed and hyper-individuality</a>.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Over the next 50 years or so, the version would eventually include "of the United States" after "flag" and a simple "to" before "republic." It wasn't too controversial.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Then, an attorney from Illinois, <a href="http://www.kofc15085.com/knights-of-columbus-pledge-of-allegiance/">Louis Bowman</a>, shook the wording up a bit. At a meeting of the Sons of the American Revolution in 1948, he added "under God," claiming Abraham Lincoln used the same phrase in his Gettysburg Address. Almost all reported transcripts from the speech do include "that the nation shall, under God, have a new birth of freedom."</p>
<p>Bowman continued to deliver his version of the Pledge, and others, like the Knights of Columbus, began reciting it, too. Various people even wrote letters to the president at the time, Harry Truman, and met with him to request the more religious tone.&nbsp;</p>
<p>Finally, the government became involved. In 1953,&nbsp;<span></span><a href="http://books.google.com/books?id=T6v-hpqD654C&amp;pg=PA32&amp;lpg=PA32&amp;dq=Louis+Rabaut+pledge+of+allegiance&amp;source=bl&amp;ots=7EakxMbv-q&amp;sig=OInyPwMH2FH5qKh89iy3PImmKpU&amp;hl=en&amp;sa=X&amp;ei=jrWcU_2xD87esATM6YHgDg&amp;ved=0CDsQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&amp;q=Louis%20Rabaut%20pledge%20of%20allegiance&amp;f=false">Louis Rabaut</a>, a democrat from Michigan<span>&nbsp;sponsored&nbsp;</span><span>a resolution to add the words "under God" to the Pledge. It failed. But by then, the decision was up to President Dwight D. Eisenhower. Recently baptized as a Presbyterian, he heard a sermon, arguing the words "under God" from Lincoln's speech set the United States apart from others as a nation. At the time, the Cold War was gaining steam, and Eisenhower was fighting communism across the globe.&nbsp;</span></p>
<p><span>The next day,&nbsp;<span>the president encouraged&nbsp;</span><a href="http://whtc.com/news/articles/2014/jan/03/michigan-lawmakers-fight-to-keep-under-god-in-pledge-of-allegiance/">Charles Oakman</a>, a republican also from Michigan<span>, to re-introduce the bill, which Congress passed. Eisenhower signed it into law on June 14, 1954. A story announcing the news in the Washington Post quoted him as saying the new version would add "spiritual weapons which will forever be our country's most powerful resource."&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Naturally, in a nation with growing diversity of religions, "under God" has proven a polarizing phrase. Separation of church and state also factors into the politicized discussion.</span></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><span>Two years later, on Flag Day again, Eisenhower also made "</span><span></span><a href="http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/president-eisenhower-signs-in-god-we-trust-into-law">In God We Trust</a><span>" our nation's official motto. The man must have loved his new religion.&nbsp;</span></span></p><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/under-god-added-to-pledge-of-allegiance-2014-6#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p> http://www.businessinsider.com/judge-upholds-religious-phrase-in-the-pledge-of-allegiance-2012-6Judge Shoots Down Atheists' Claim That Pledge Of Allegiance Is Religioushttp://www.businessinsider.com/judge-upholds-religious-phrase-in-the-pledge-of-allegiance-2012-6
Wed, 13 Jun 2012 12:02:00 -0400Abby Rogers
<p><img style="float:right;" src="http://static3.businessinsider.com/image/4fd8af02eab8eab252000005/pledge-of-allegiance.jpg" border="0" alt="pledge of allegiance" /></p><p>An atheist couple and their children have lost their fight to have "under God" stricken from the Pledge of Allegiance.</p>
<p>The <a href="http://boston.com/metrodesk/2012/06/11/superior-court-judge-affirms-use-pledge-allegiance-under-god-mass-schools/6xU0tH39ZzqVI6ZHKIRupN/story.html?p1=News_links" target="_blank">family's lawsuit</a> against Massachusetts' Acton-Boxborough Regional School District and the Acton schools was thrown out Friday, the Boston Globe reported.</p>
<p>The family argued the words "under God" were a "religious truth" and contradicted their beliefs.</p>
<p>And while they <a href="http://www.scribd.com/doc/96965154/SJ-Decision-Partial" target="_blank">admitted in court filings</a> they knew they could opt out of saying the pledge, they still wanted the phrase removed, court records stated.</p>
<p>But Middlesex Superior Court Judge S. Jane Haggerty threw the case out Friday, claiming the daily recitation of the words didn't violate the plaintiffs' rights.</p>
<p>In the ruling, Haggerty declared the plaintiffs' beliefs that the phrase serves as a daily religious affirmation are wrong.</p>
<p>Haggerty also ruled phrase is "not a religious document or ceremony but a patriotic exercise," according to court documents.</p>
<h2><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/a-judge-sided-with-cleveland-on-its-trans-fats-ban-2012-6" target="_blank">DON'T MISS: A Judge Sided With Cleveland On Its Trans Fats Ban &gt;</a></h2>
<div style="overflow: hidden; color: #000000; background-color: #ffffff; text-align: left; text-decoration: none;">&nbsp;</div><p><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/judge-upholds-religious-phrase-in-the-pledge-of-allegiance-2012-6#comments">Join the conversation about this story &#187;</a></p>